Major milestone reached in Croydon railway redevelopment

Croydon Council has welcomed the news vital upgrades to train lines through central Croydon are a step closer to fruition.

The council has been lobbying government for urgent improvements to the Brighton Main Line, specifically in the East Croydon area, to increase the number of trains into central London per hour and reduce over-crowding on services.

Network Rail has today announced they have received funding from the Department for Transport, which will enable them to work up detailed designs for the track and station work in the Croydon area; produce an outline business case so informed decisions can be made about funding the scheme to delivery; and carry out a full public consultation to enable the local community, passengers and those directly affected by the work to share their views on the designs.

Their initial proposals would also see a new, expanded East Croydon station, with additional tracks and flyover junctions to remove the ‘bottleneck’ just north of the station where services often have to wait, causing congestion. Increasing the number of platforms at East Croydon from six to eight would also form part of the improvements.

Councillor Tony Newman, leader of the council

“I am pleased the government has listened to Croydon and progress is now being made to deliver the improvements desperately needed to the Brighton Main Line, and specifically to the railway through Croydon.

“Our borough is undergoing significant regeneration and it is essential we have the rail infrastructure to support this. I welcome today’s announcement which is a significant step in the right direction to ensuring Croydon has the rail links it will need in the future.”

Councillor Stuart King, cabinet member for transport and environment

“The Brighton Main Line has been in urgent need of improvement for some time, so I am delighted by this positive development.

“The proposed upgrade will improve reliability and enable an increase in the number of services which in turn will reduce overcrowding, all of which will be welcomed by Croydon residents using the trains. We will continue to lobby government to commit to funding this project so these vital improvements are made.”